It's a boy's life
by tokyo126
Summary: Natasha is trapped in a situation unlike any other. She is filling in for her brother at Marvel Academy. Will she survive, who will she meet along the way? AU/rated M for language and future sexual content
1. Chapter 1: RUNAWAY

**Hey guys, this story was inspired by one of my favorite manga plots. I thought it would be interesting for Natasha to be in a situation like this. Tell me what you think, hope you enjoy, R&R :)**

**DISCLAIMER NOTICE: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTER**

CHAPTER 1: RUNAWAY

Staring in front of her was the most daunting realization she had ever faced. She stood in front of the gate with a sign that read, Marvel Academy for Boys. She went from being Natasha A. Romanoff to Alexei S. Romanoff, her brother. The situation at hand began no more than a week ago.

One Week Ago~

Alexei was lying in bed lost in thought until the voice of his mother rang through his room, "Alexei, c'mon we need to start packing your things before the big move" Slowly turning his head towards the door he looked blankly down the hall giving her a silent response.

Irritation was building on Mrs. Romanoff's face, before ascending the stairs Natasha intervened. "I got him mom, no need to bring out the big guns."

A frustrated sigh escaped their mother's lips, "Just get him out of bed, we have a deadline to meet before heading to the school."

"I know mom" Hollering back from down the hall she approached her brother's room. Leaning on the frame of the door she looked at the lump of sheets called Alexei.

"You know your pissing off mom right now, right?" Receiving no answer she continued, "And it's not gonna get any better when dad finds out you haven't even begun packing."

Abruptly, Alexei sat up swiftly turning to his sister's direction. "You don't even know half the shit I'm going through right now Nat!" Natasha was taken aback at her brother's sudden out burst but was quickly replaced with anger.

"Oh, and what's so hard about going to a fucking prestigious school, all expense paid by our parents, by the way. What's so wrong about moving out of this godforsaken house?! If I were you right now I would be jumping for fucking joy right now Alexei!" Natasha had had enough of her brother's pity party.

"You don't know what its like to forced Natasha…To be sent away with the expectations of the world on you, to be shoved off to be someone else's problem, you have no idea…they didn't even ask me if wanted this…" Alexei casted his gaze downwards solemnly as if on the verge of crying.

Natasha knew that his relationship with their dad hasn't always been the best; they would usually butt heads about everything and anything. She sat next to him pulling him into a hug, trying to lighten the mood she comfort her brother, "It's going to be fine Alexei look on the bright side, I'm not going to be there to bother you"

In a moment it hit him, Alexei shoot up from his seat, which caused him to knock Natasha to the side.

"Hey, what the hell is your problem?"

"Nat! That's it!"

"What is, my fist in your face cause I'm this close to punching you right now"

"No, no, no, you said you would kill to be in my place right?" Natasha narrowed her eyes slowly nodding her head in agreement knowing that something was coming up.

"We, you and I, can switch places" She just stared at him, "That is the most idiotic answer in the world"

Pleadingly he got on his knees in front of her "Nat look, you go in as me for a bit while I straighten out my shitty life, its only going to be for a little bit please, please, please Natasha please I'm begging you for your help"

"No this is stupid"

"But Nat-"

"Hurry up and pack your shit already" she exited the room annoyed. The next few days after Alexei's resistance, everything was packed and sent to the school.

Two days before Alexei was suppose to leave to Marvel Academy, he ran away from his problems.

"We have to find him, we need to find him Ivan!" Mrs. Romanoff was frantic, her son went missing during the night only to leave behind an apology note for them to find the next morning.

"You don't think I know that Marie…That stupid boy is a coward bringing about nothing but trouble for us, leaving us to clean up his shit!" Mr. Romanoff was furious after learning that his son left.

"What do we do now Ivan the school is expecting his attendance and we already paid for the first two years, what are we going to do?!"

"The school will not know about this mess, we invested too much…god dammit Alexei" The frustration was completely evident in his features; the tension of the room grew with every passing moment. Mrs. Romanoff was sobbing in her seat, the realization of the problems at hand proved to be too much to bear. After a while Mr. Romanoff leaned forward with his face in his hands "I don't know anymore Marie…I don't know"

Natasha was within ear shoot of the entire conversation her parents were having over Alexei. 'That idiot, how can you be so selfish and thickheaded, now of all the moments in life decide to be an ass you chose, now?!' She couldn't help the feeling of sympathy and frustration towards the situation, and then it hit her. She remembered Alexei's idea of them switching places in the school. 'God Alexei seriously I'm left with this' Natasha walked into the living room where she found her parents.

"Mom, Dad…" Her parents looked up, "Not now Natasha can't you see the mess your brother has caused"

"Yes, I know that dad, that's why I have something in mind that might, save it" Both parents were looking at her curiously as to what she had in mind.

"I…will take…Alexei's place at Marvel Academy" Mr. Romanoff looked at his daughter with a serious gaze; Mrs. Romanoff knew what he was thinking.

"No you will not!"

"Mom it's the only way to keep his slot in the school or else all that money you spent on this school will go to the waste side!" Natasha's voice was a bit shaky; she didn't even believe the words that she was saying. She stared at her mother until her father stood up to faced her.

"Natasha this is serious…are you willing to do all of that for your brother, to throw away your position in Our Lady of Purification?" Natasha straightened her posture and looked at her father "If it's for family, than I am willing to do anything" Her father took a few minutes before hugging her while repeating the words 'I'm sorry'.

The next day she cut her hair and packed her bags. Arriving at the school she turned to her parents to say goodbye.

"Take care my baby girl this is not permanent at all, only until we find your brother, be safe and don't let any of the boys here touch you at all"

"I know mom I'll try my best" Her mother hugged her tightly while crying in her shoulder a little, next was her father.

"Your mother is right, this is only until we find Alexei, I have a friend that works here and he will help you with anything you need, here's his name and number, please call us frequently sweetheart."

"I will Dad, please find him" She grabbed the paper from her father's hand before hugging him goodbye "We will find your brother in no time, ok" Saying their final farewells to their daughter they drove off.

"Ivan…do you think we're making the right decision, leaving her in Alexei's place?" Mrs. Romanoff was meet with silence before he spoke up, "I don't know Marie…but I do know is that Natasha is a strong young woman, all we can do now is find our son and prayer for our daughter…"


	2. Chapter 2: WELCOME TO MARVEL ACADEMY

CHAPTER 2: WELCOME TO MARVEL ACADEMY

"God this place is massive, where is anything?" It's been less than an hour being on campus and she already feels overwhelmed just by the sheer size of the school. Opening a folder of papers she found a pamphlet of the school, luckily for her it had a small semblance of a map of the campus.

"Ok, so I am in the…north entrance and I need to get to the…west wing which is that way…I think?" A migraine quickly took place as her mood soured. She had no idea where to go or who to turn to, she was surround by other people but it only made her feel lonelier. 'Pull yourself together Natasha everyone is counting on you' She decided to follow the vague direction of where she thought the west wing was. 'God this place is a pure sausage fest, even the faculty was mainly male.' She had an odd feeling dwelling in her, almost to a point where it was uncomfortable. 'No one is even looking at me, or even noticing' Natasha began to realize how well her appearance was able to blend in as if she was really a guy. Thankfully, Alexei was on the thinner side or else she wouldn't be able to fit his clothes properly. 'I wonder if this hair cut is too long' wandering in her thoughts she didn't realize that another body was rapidly approaching her. WHAM.

Natasha was knocked to the ground as she collided with another person, "Hey watch where you're going!"

"Sorry my bad, I wasn't looking." Natasha began to stand up before a hand shoot out to assist her. When she looked up she saw the most gorgeous man on the face of the world.

"Ok man, looks like you fell pretty hard." She just took his hand still marveling at the man in front of her.

Quickly composing herself, "Th-thanks thanks, I'm ok now"

"Seems like you're new here"

"Yea, just got here, this campus is too damn big." He scoffed "You've only seen the Northern part wait till you get to the rest, it's a hell of a maze for newbies, but I'll help you out a bit since I did cause you bodily damage"

"Ok" Natasha trailed behind the tall, handsome, blonde that lead the way.

Natasha was gawking inwardly at everything about the school. Paved pathways lined with beautiful birch trees, marvelous building structures, and the occasional pavilion here and there, they even had a modern art garden. ' Holy baby cows, Alexei how did not want to be here, its freaking amazing here'. Even though she was taking in the surroundings she kept an eye on the man leading the way. Natasha noticed that his steps began to slow, she knew he was waiting for her so she speed up her steps a bit.

Catching up to him she saw that there was a smirk on his face "Is something wrong?"

"No, I was remembering how I was when I first got here last year, thought the school was big in pictures but seeing the real thing was too cool."

Cocking his head to her side to hear her, "Yea I know what you mean…this place is just…damn."

"So where you from um…" He asked

"Na-Alexei, I'm Alexei Romanoff, I'm from Rockville, Maryland" She caught herself.

"Wow pretty high class area, nice, I'm just a guy from Brooklyn"

"Ah the city of art, a kick ass night life, and great food"

"You got that right, nothing beats home."

"Yea… so how did you get put here?" she asked.

"Got lucky, a scholarship came my way and I'd been looking at schools for awhile, searched this one and it had everything on my list, what about you?"

"Uhh, my parents kinda forced me to be here told me that it would be good for me and everything"

"Props to them, schools like this are hard to come by" For the rest of the way they walked in silence until they reached the west wing dorms.

"So this it the West wing dorms AKA S. Lee Hall." They entered the building and pointed her to a counter where a line of boys was beginning to form a line.

"You better get over there fast, tends to be a lot of guys fighting over the rooms." Natasha took his advice and began to head towards the desk; she looked back, "Hey thanks man, I didn't catch your name"

"Steve Rogers" Natasha discreetly watched him walk away 'Steve Rogers gotta remember that one'. Once she got her assigned room with as little complications as possible, one of the guys almost began a fire fight over a room at the front desk. Natasha made her way through the halls of the fourth floor looking for room 14.

"12, 13, oh 14" Taking the key out of her pocket, unlocking the door, relief washed over her when she heard the click of the lock. Entering the room she noticed the boxes that were stacked near the entranceway. The room was bigger than what she was expecting. It was a fully equipped room with a small kitchen area, bathroom with a shower, living area, bedroom, and a storage closet. 'Ok, I can work with this' Nodding to herself approving of her current living status. Thankfully all the rooms in this dorm are single suites, she wouldn't know what kind of hell she would've faced if the room were shared.

Evening~

Natasha took a breather from setting up her new dorm room. Alexei packed just enough items to make the dorm feel lived in; her parents even sent a couple extra boxes of items specifically for her tastes. Sprawled out on the bed she reflected on all the recent events that have taken place. Alexei was nowhere to be found, her parents were on the search, which left her to fill in for him in an all boy's school. On the bright side she did get to meet Mr. Steve Rogers. Smiling to herself she remembered how easy on the eyes he was also a very charming fellow. She turned over to check the time on her phone she then remembered about the piece of paper her father gave her.

"Shit I need to call this…Dr. Phil Coulson, I wonder if he's a teacher here." Natasha heard a soft growl from her stomach.

"First, I need to eat...where's that map?" Flipping over the pamphlet she saw that the cafeteria hall of the west wing was on the lower level of the building. Natasha grabbed a crew neck while making sure none of her feminine parts were visible, grabbing her keys she headed down the hall towards the elevator.

Natasha pressed the down arrow and waited for the elevator to arrive. DING. Her attention turned towards the elevator doors only to reveal Steve with a couple other guys. Natasha raised her eyebrows in surprise to find who it was but she remembered to keep her cool.

"Hey Alexei, you heading to get some chow too" Steve hollered at her as she stepped inside the elevator nervously.

"Yea..." Natasha took a quick glance over the 3 other guys that accompanied Steve.

"Oh these are some of my buddies Thor, Loki, and Bucky"

"Wassup" Natasha attempted to act a little more manly. Thor was the first to speak after introductions.

"Hello friend, it is nice to see a new face in our facilities." Natasha noticed that Thor was a couple inches taller that Steve but just as muscular, he had shoulder length blonde hair, but his accent and formalities struck her.

"Thor and Loki here are from the Netherlands they came here last year as well." Steve said after Thor's brief greeting. Natasha noticed that the guy Steve pointed out as Loki; was the shortest out of the guys and was on the quite side.

Bucky was the next to greet Natasha "Hey, I'm James but people call me Bucky" Bucky stuck his hand out to Natasha who grabbed it as firmly as possible.

"Nice grip for soft hands" he smirked.

"Uh thanks…" Natasha's brows furrowed in response.

"Hey be nice to the newbie, Buck" Steve retorted while Thor chuckled at the quarrel occurring between his friends. Natasha just stood there observing how the guys interacted with each other. DING.

Loki spoke "We have arrived at the cafeteria"

"Splendid, come friends let us feast till our hearts content." Thor exited the elevator excitedly while his brother and friends trailed behind him. Natasha and Steve were the last ones out of the elevator

"Is he always like that?"

"Not always when he sleeps not even a grenade can't wake him." She laughed a bit at the comment.

"We better hurry before there's nothing left." Steve began to walk ahead of her; Natasha on the other hand purposely took her time before entering the mess hall. 'I can do this, just act cool, keep it cool' Quickly finding a place in line she waddled her way towards the counter

"What will it be, kiddo?" The lady from behind the counter asked.

"Um I'll have the chicken with rice and steamed vegetables, please." The lady nodded and handed her the plate, "Chicken with rice for the pretty young man"

Natasha took the plate without question but couldn't help but feel a bit offended by her words. Brushing it off she had another problem at hand, where to sit. Skirting around numerous tables filled with guys eating and chatting 'Where's Steve?' She swept the room trying to find the tall blonde among the crowd. Finally spotting him in the back of the room she made her way towards the table. A couple guys would occasionally look up to see who is passing them. She took note of the ones that caught her curiosity.

"Looks like you survived the line" Bucky scooted over a seat for her.

"Yea, the lady was a bit off putting" She sat down.

"Hill? Nah, don't take it personally she likes to tease all the new guys that come to the west wing, isn't that right, Steve" Steve scoffed avoiding eye contact which made everyone laugh, even Natasha let out a small chuckle.

"Steve here isn't all that great with the ladies, Hill found it really entertaining messing with him last year, I think she still does" Steve nudged Bucky to stop but it only made him laugh harder at his friend's embarrassment.

"Lady Hill is quit nice though she always gives me more chicken, hmm delicious." Thor continued consuming his food happily. Natasha suddenly remembered about the guys that looked at her, she wondered who they were.

"Hey do you guys know who they are over there, the guy with spikey hair next to the one with the glasses."

Steve glanced in their direction "Ah that's Tony Stark and Bruce Banner. I've known those two before, Stark's dad is the owner of Stark Industries while Bruce's dad is one of the head engineers that work for him, and those two are like brothers."

"Plus, Tony and Bruce are the geniuses of the school, Tony is one of the playboys here as well, woo what I would do to get some of the ass he gets" Bucky added.

"What about that guy in the corner table by himself?."

Loki looked up, "Hm that is Clint Barton, what do you call him again here in your country, a loner if I'm not mistaken"

Bucky nodded, "Yea, he mainly sticks to himself not many people know much about him except that his marksmanship is world class but that's about it."

Natasha stared at Clint before asking about the last man. "What about that guy, the one with the gap in his teeth sitting over there."

Steve glanced up this time, "Oh that's my buddy Sam Wilson, the guy is an amazing wide receiver." For the remainder of the meal, the guys chatted amongst themselves while Natasha sat and listened. After dinner everyone headed back to their rooms.

"Thanks guys" Natasha turned to them before stepping off the elevator.

"No problem dude see ya around" She raised her hand to sign a goodbye, they nodded and the elevator doors closed.

Making her way back her room the first thing she did was look for the paper her father gave her. "Dr. Phil Coulson, let's see."

6th Floor~

The guys walked in silence all contemplating on the new guy, Alexei Romanoff. Bucky was the first to speak, "Hey is it me of was that guy kinda uh, girlie, and his hands were hella soft man like no joke."

"Indeed he did come off as a bit feminine." Thor said inquisitively, "What do you think Steven?"

Steve was quite for a moment then shrugged, "Nothing really comes to mind honestly."

"I feel as if he will be bringing about something intriguing from here on" Loki added.

"Anyways night guys" Bucky turned into his room.

"Night guys" Steve entered his room; he sat on the couch which left him thinking about the new guy as well. 'Alexei Romanoff…such an odd guy'.

**Hey guys, so this is the first two chapters of the story. I have more ideas planned out as the story progresses but I would like to know what you guys think of it first. Thanks for reading :)**


	3. Chapter 3: TRUST

CHAPTER 3: TRUST

The next morning Natasha woke up anxiously, anticipating her meeting with Dr. Coulson. She was able to contact him last night and schedule a meeting with him

"Finally, someone here that can actually help me." Deciding to skip breakfast she made quick work of the precautions to conceal her identity. She began to bind her chest in order to appear flat under her clothing, a tedious task but necessary. After making sure the binding is secure she throw on a pair of slim jeans, a t-shirt, and a jacket. She was out the door within 20 minutes. Natasha pulled out the directions that Dr. Coulson gave her last night over the phone.

"I need to head the east side of the school and towards the HSS building…ok easy enough" She began to her way towards the east wing of the academy. With the help of Dr. Coulson's directions and landmarks she made it there with little to no problems.

"Room 207… room 207, where is it?" Confused, she gave in to asking for assistance, she looked around and saw a figure walk through the halls.

'It's that Barton guy from yesterday' Natasha tried to catch up to him, "Excuse me…hey excuse me!"

He turned around, "What do you want…"

"Um do you know where room 207 is, Dr. Phil Coulson's office?" Clint looked at the paper she had in her hands.

"Down this hall take the first right and it's the 7th door down" He pointed the directions out with his fingers.

"Ok, thank-" He was already walking away from her before he caught her words 'rude much'. She waved it off and made her way through the hall following Clint's directions, low and behold she found his office.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK. "Dr. Coulson its Alexei Romanoff." She used her brother's name in case if anyone was passing by without her knowing. The door opened, "Come in, come in" Natasha obliged to his offer, hearing the close behind her she was meet with a welcoming hug from the older man.

"Its so nice to see you again Natasha, I'm so sorry that you have to be in such a position." Natasha didn't quite know how to respond so she lightly returned the hug.

"We've meet before?" Coulson pulled apart from the embrace to give her a proper answer, "Yes, but you were only a toddler at the time, I've meet you and your brother Alexei, it was years ago though but I still remember you trying to waddle around." He laughed cheerily at the memory.

"It's really nice to have someone I can confide in right now." She gave a small smile.

"Of course, your father told me all about your circumstances, I hope your brother is ok out there… he'll return in no time" She pursed her lips a little at the thought of her missing brother; he took note of her discomfort and quickly switched the topic.

"So have you been acquainted with the campus as you can already see its quite large for an all boy's school."

"I've only seen the north and west parts of the campus, I almost got lost on my way here aha"

"Ok, so I'll take you through the campus and then I have a few people for you to meet that can help you as well."

The school never ceased to amaze Natasha. Coulson was in front of her explaining the history of the grounds. She wasn't particularly paying attention to his words as her attention was towards the different abstract pieces in the garden.

"Oh and here is the piece called the shield, this was donated to us by one of the pervious alumni, his inspiration was from the bonds he made here…" Natasha could tell he was very enthusiastic about the school's roots and standings but it honestly bored her. They continued from the garden to the science building, recreational center, gym/auditorium, the art building, English building, the dean's office, the east and south dorms, lecture hall, and finally the health building.

"This is the Health building, this is where you'll have your health science classes, some miscellaneous classes are held here as well, but most of all it's the nursing ward, which leads us to our first guest." Coulson lead them to a door that read Nurse's Office: Dr. Pepper Potts.

"Hello, Pepper are you here?" He peaked inside the office only to find a certain strawberry blonde cleaning up various medical items off the counter.

"Oh Phil, I was expecting you to come by later, sorry the place is a bit of a mess, some kids came in earlier."

"Its fine Pepper, I have Natasha with me."

"Oh my gosh come in, come in, let me see her!" she exclaimed excitedly. Coulson and Natasha walked into the office; she was swiftly met with an embrace from the young nurse. A few awkward moments passed before Pepper released Natasha, she didn't want to seem offensive about it so just let her hug her.

"Oh sorry, I get really excited whenever there is someone new here especially since your a girl its a nice change, there is so little female staff here, no offense Phil" he waved her off while finding a chair to let the two women chat.

"So I'm Dr. Pepper Potts, you can call me Ms. Pepper, I'm the head of the nursing department here so any and all medical related accounts go through me and considering your situation it's a good thing I am a woman as well." She said lightheartedly.

"Thank you so much Ms. Pepper." After a few minutes of acquainting herself with the young nurse she immediately knew that she was very straightforward, bubbly, and serious about her position in the school.

"OK Natasha, we gotta go now I have one more person on my list for you to meet." Coulson was getting up from his seat and moved to the door.

"Thank you again Ms. Pepper."

"Hon, don't worry about it, come visit me anytime you want if you need anything" Natasha waved goodbye and exited the ward. Coulson lead her back to the west wing dorms.

"Why are we back here?" she inquired. "The person to assist you is in your dorms, conveniently enough." Coulson said as he opened the entrance way, they went down the elevator, and into the cafeteria.

"Maria are you back there?" Coulson walked back behind the counter.

"Phil, you just missed my legendary apple cinnamon oatmeal, the boys devoured it." Phil chuckled at her statement, a woman rounded the corner revealing that it was the lady from last night.

"I have the 'boy' I was talking about" Phil cocked his head in Natasha's direction, Maria's eyes went wide for a second, "Follow me to the back of the kitchen, everyone just finished cleaning up" they trailed behind her into the kitchen.

"You're the young man from last night, I'm sorry for teasing you I had no idea" Natasha cut her off curtly, "It's ok, it's good to know that my disguise worked, actually"

"Phil told me last night over the phone about you and I am more than glad to keep an extra eye on you, you can call me Maria or Hill, not misses that's my mother." Natasha and Maria made small talk leaving Coulson to pick off some of the leftovers from breakfast.

"Damn girl, you got some guts that's for sure, filling in for your brother like this, but don't let the fancy lights and sounds of this school foul you, some of these boys only have half a brain but a fully-sized dick, you gotta be careful with who your around." What Maria said made Natasha think back to the guys she meet last night.

"The boys you were sitting with last night are a good bunch, I don't think they'll be giving you any problems but there are a few…troublemakers in this dorm." Natasha took a mental note of her words of advice,

"Thanks for the advice Maria"

"Anytime, come to me if anyone here is giving you problems, these boys won't survive without my cooking, look at Phil over there for example" Maria added on with a grin while turning her attention to the man eating pancakes. After the trip down to the cafeteria Coulson followed Natasha back to her room.

"So now that you know some people here I hope it puts you at ease a little, you have my number right, call me or come to my office, ok Nat" He was careful not to be too loud in the hallway.

'Uhh fuck me, such a long morning and its only 10:34am.' Natasha crashed on couch once Coulson left; she just wanted to sleep but she couldn't ignore the small gnawing in her stomach. She got up and walked into the kitchen area, realizing that the only food she had was the few snacks she brought along with her, which wasn't much of anything. Sighing she decided to check out the small café near the recreational center.

Marvel café~

"I'll have a strawberry banana smoothie with an energy blend please." Loki was out for a jog and decided to stop by the Marvel café. While waiting for his beverage he spotted Alexei walking towards the stall. 'Hm what a delectable site...' He grinned to himself, he had been in the closet for about two years now, and he could finally admit it to himself but no one else. He's had his eye on Alexei since yesterday. He can't help but stare at the new eye candy of the campus. Natasha noticed Loki was staring at her when she approached the café, ignoring it she made her order.

"Can I have a chicken sandwich and a tall green tea latté?" The cashier ringed her up and she handed the money over.

"So you finally found the gem of the campus." Loki tried to strike up a conversation to break the tension but to his dismay it only made Natasha feel uneasy.

"Yea…I took a quick tour around campus this morning…"

"Fascinating and was it to your liking, Alexei" Loki added emphasis to her name. Natasha glanced at him; she let out a small irritated sigh when she noticed he winked at her, even as a boy she was getting hit on. Loki kept glancing her over every so often while they waited for their orders. She discreetly cracked her knuckles by clenching her fists. Finally, receiving her order she booked it to the door but she still was able to catch Loki's last words.

"If you need anything, hit me up!" Loki snickered at the site of Alexei leaving the café; he loved toying with those who caught his attention. 'This is indeed going to be an intriguing year'.

"Holy shit, Loki was totally checking me out…that was creepy as fuck." Natasha begun to talk to herself while she ate in the room.

"Even as a guy I'm getting hit on…oh Loki if you only knew that I'm not part of the team you're swinging for. " The remainder of her day was spent unpacking the rest of her belongings.

Evening~

"It is finally time to feast on Lady Hill's marvelous meatloaf" Thor exclaimed. Steve, Loki, and Bucky were following behind the bellowing blonde.

"I wonder where that Alexei fellow is?", Loki thought out loud.

"Haven't seen him all day I wonder if I should go check on him", Steve suggested.

"He's pretty small you should see if the little guy is still alive in his room." Steve took Bucky's suggestion and hit the button to the fourth floor.

"Alright I'll see you guys in the mess hall"

"Later, cap.'" Steve casually walked towards Alexei's room and knocked on the door.

"Hey dude you in there? It's dinner time, the guys and I were wondering if you were still alive or something." Natasha abruptly woke up to hear Steve knocking at her door; she dozed off in the middle of the day. 'Fuck'

"Yup yea, yea I'll see you down there Steve!" Natasha yelled back with a deeper tone. Scrambling she got up and fixed her clothes before heading out the door. Steve was already waiting at the elevator by the time she caught up to him.

"Took you long enough" Steve said teasingly as she approached him.

"Yea sorry I was doing some work outs and uh push ups…and stuff" Steve stared off to the side weirdly at her comment. It was an awkward way down.

"Time for some chow." Steve exited the elevator leaving Natasha mentally kicking herself 'What the fuck push ups and stuff?!'

She grabbed a tray and waited in line. On approaching the front of the line she was greeted by Maria's smiling face, "What can I get for you, sweet pea" She knew Marie's teasing was her way of affection towards the students.

"Can I have the meatloaf with mashed Potatoes and broccoli?"

"An order of the good stuff coming up." Maria handed her the plate, which she took gladly. She quickly spotted the guys sitting at the same table near the back of the cafeteria, she made sure to sit as far away from Loki as possible. She noticed that there was a new addition to the group, Sam Wilson.

"This is my buddy Sam I was talking about yesterday, Sam this is the new guy Alexei" Sam wiped his hands with a napkin before out stretching it to Natasha.

"Wassup, dude"

"Sup"

"Where've you been all day man we could've used you on the court today, short one man." Bucky said.

"I was looking around campus trying to figure out where everything is."

Thor interjected, "Have you seen the new exhibit on the Norse Gods in the HSS building? It's quit astounding honestly."

"Oh and did you see Nurse Potts, damn she got a nice ass" Sam added to conversation.

"Hell yea, come check me out nurse"

"I think I'm coming done with something nurse" The guys began to get railed up about Ms. Pepper it made her blood boil.

"Hey, why don't you shut the fuck up" Natasha blurted out loud. The guys stopped and stared at her, she had to say something to back up her words "It's not right for us to be wailing on woman like that. They deserve to be treated better, not like some animal."

The table got quite until someone said, "Someone is an activist." Which made the guys laugh.

"Calm down Mr. Jane Goodall." Natasha slightly glared at Sam. Not wanting to further the conversation she sat in silence and ate her food quickly then left. Watching Alexei walk away from the group Steve made a mental note to check on him later.

'Guys are all the same, all they think about it is sex and…food, the nerve of those guys, how could someone say something so insulting so nonchalantly.' She was furious at the guys' behavior towards Ms. Pepper. 'I hate men.'

**Hey guys, thanks for the reviews and follows. As you can see Natasha's school life is just beginning and she isn't up to speed yet about how guys think or act around each other. Her more feisty side is beginning to show here and there and yes I made Loki gay I feel like his role would fit better as a gay guy. Lots of luv to you guys, hope to hear from you :)**


	4. Chapter 4: SCHEDULES

The guys continued their meal after Alexie's hasty departure. Bucky was the first to speak out about their new friend's sensitive behavior. Thor and Sam agreed with Bucky's statement. However, being the good guy Steve defended Alexei giving him the benefit of the doubt in the conversation. The table became tense and they decided to drop the subject all together. Steve mentioned the class schedules were going to be handed out tomorrow morning, "Hey did you guys get the classes you signed up for last year?"

"Yea I finally got my physics class, I had to beg the counselor for the last spot."

'Oh I have algebra this year."

"What now way, thank God I thought I was going to die alone in that class"

"I'm really hoping for Mrs. Johnson's class for sociology."

"Have any of you taken any AP classes yet?"

"Ew you guys are such nerds, I'm gonna be enjoying some time in the gym in P.E." Bucky began to flex his muscles. Steve just laughed at his sad attempt.

"Psh your brain is gonna by puddy once exams hit just like last year."

"Yea and we had to save your ass." Sam remarked.

The mood lightened at the change of topic. The table soon buzzed with excitement about classes. Asking each other what classes they are taking, which ones they had together and so forth, overall leaving the guys on a good note. Steve decided to be an upstanding guy and check up on Alexei. He knew his friends could be a little harsh at times but they weren't all bad. He felt a tinge of hesitance before knocking on Alexei's door. KNOCK KNOCK. Steve took a step back; fortunately for him it took only a minute for the door to open harshly revealing a displeased redhead.

Steve stuck his hands in his pockets and began to apologize on his friends' behalf, "Hey look I'm sorry for what the other's were saying but c'mon man we were just playing around." He found that being in Alexie's presence made the guilt feel even worse. He stood there unsure on what to say next so instead he decided to ask if they were cool.

Natasha being on the other side of the situation stood in front of him slightly leaning on the frame before deciding to accept the apology or not. On the contrary she found it to be a flattering gesture for him to be here doing this. Giving him a half smile she did the most boyish thing she could think of which was to lightly punch him on his upper arm, "Yea were cool."

She woke up the next day in a better mood from last night. It was a nice gesture for Steve to come to her to apologize for his friends. Reluctantly she rolled out of bed to begin her morning routine. Once she was showered and her chest bindings were secured she looked through her closet. Feeling the need for cooler clothes she chose to go with cargo shorts, a long sleeved Billabong shirt, and her brother's Volcom Snapback, everything looked so baggy on her petite form but it was good enough. She glanced at the clock reading 8:46, 'damn it's still early to pick up my schedule'. To eat up time, she busied herself with small tasks that she forgot to do the other day. Natasha put together a small grocery list of food and other items; she called up Dr. Coulson to as him about the transit system, and even had time to organize around her dorm. Once she heard voices in the hallway Natasha quickly rechecked herself in the mirror before grabbing her keys and exiting the vicinity.

A massive crowd was forming in front of the center. 'Another wonderful start in testosterone paradise' she thought. There were hundreds of students lining up at various tables. Pushing her way through the busy crowd she was able to pinpoint the table that was attending to students between Q and U. Without looking, Natasha accidentally bumped into a guy wearing sunglasses with a slight feeling of entitlement around him.

"Oh sorry my bad", apologizing immediately to whomever it was. Looking up she noticed it was one of the guys Steve pointed out to her the first night, Tony stark.

"Hey watch it next time shorty, just got these J's yesterday." Nat could feel his glare through his sunglasses, which only made her just as displeased with his response. She ignored his small outburst and continued to patiently wait for her turn. It didn't take long for the line move along quickly. Approaching the front Natasha heard the word next calling out to Tony. The elderly woman looked up and sighed heavily.

"Why hello again Bernadette aren't you looking ravishing as ever, did you do something with your hair?" Tony seemed to be smiling with devious innocence. The elderly lady didn't even bat an eye towards him before handing over a sheet of paper.

"I'm a new man this year Bernadette, I promise you I won't explode things as much this time around." The older woman only waved him off to the clear the front of the line.

"Next", Natasha heard her call for the next person.

"Alexei S. Romanoff", Natasha watched the lady shuffle and sort for her paper. She began to worry when she went through it a second time. Mrs. Castle looked up, "I'm sorry dear but your papers aren't here."

"Um there must be a mistake, can you look one more time…please." Not wanting to cause a disturbance calmly she asked the lady to look once more alas she came out with nothing. Mrs. Castle was beginning to get irritated with the boy in front of her.

"Look this happens all the time so what you gotta do now is go to the admin's building and they should have your papers there, I have 200 other kids to take care of, c'mon get a move on." Natasha couldn't risk getting her cover blown; she knew by going to the admins office was a very big red flag in her case.

Again she insisted once more, "Please just once more, please Mrs. Castle".

"Last time", compiling one last time the elderly woman sifted through the stack of papers and low and behold it was found between papers. Relief immediately overcame her as the elderly woman handed her the sheet with a small apology. 'Holy shit crisis averted' still shaken by her mini panic attack she slowly stepped away from the crowd. 'Ok let's see what we got', she began to look over the classes her brother chose.

Natasha was actually kind of impressed by the course he chose she always thought her brother had bad taste in everything. She paid particular attention o the ceramics and Physics courses, she always wanted to get into those courses but they were never available in Our Lady of Purification.

Too absorbed in her thoughts Natasha didn't notice someone was approaching her.

A voice disrupted her thoughts, "May I join you?"

Her nose wrinkled with discomfort once she recognized whom it was, Loki. She didn't feel like dealing with his antics right now.

"I didn't know you liked surfer brands Alexie, is that a limited edition hat?"

"…Yea I guess", she decided to entertain him for a bit she made small talk. His eyes light up with excitement. He sat extremely close to her placing his hand in the gap between them.

"So Alexie I'm really excited for this year what about you?"

"Really great" Nat honestly hoped that he would pick up on her sarcasm and get the hint that she was anything but interested.

"So where are you from exactly?"

Natasha rolled her eyes, 'Guess not'

"Maryland"

"Do you have any hobbies in mind?"

"Nothing really"

"What about pets, you seem like a dog kind of guy to me."

"Never had any my brother is allergic"

"Oh so you have a brother"

Natasha didn't realize she said that, "What no, no, no I meant sister, my sister has the allergy"

"…ok so how is said sister?" he inquired.

"Fine I guess." Loki noticed Alexei was trying to avoid his questions so he tried a different tactic.

"I know that we barely know each other Alexie, but I really want to be friends with you, _really_ good friends" Loki snaked his arm behind her shoulders and brought her closer to him. She immediately shoved him away having enough of his game.

"Fuckin' lay off already"

He looked up at her while playing off the I'm-so-hurt face. Nat just glared at him before turning away. Loki watched him leave with a smirk on his face; something devious was brewing in his mind. 'So you want to play hard to get' His little mouse was trying to scurry out of his grip, and he isn't the one to comply so easily.

Natasha had to mentally shake off the feeling of Loki's hand on her shoulder he was beginning to make his way on her list of people to hate. She distracted herself from any thoughts of Loki by trying to find Steve. It was a rather difficult task; one would think that with Steve's stature he would stand out. Apparently the majority of males here were all well above her height. Finally after some time, she was able to spot him on a bench away from the crowd looking down at what she might presume was his schedule.

"Hey Steve!" Steve's head sprang up to see who was calling. A smile formed on his features he waved for her to sit with him.

"Hey, I see you got your classes squared away, what are you taking?"

"Um ceramics, geometry, American history, physics, English basic classes honestly"

"Damn we actually got some classes together" Steve said grinningly.

"No way for real, dude honestly that's a relief I would've died if I didn't know anyone." Nat playfully nudged him. In Steve's presence she felt calmer, he gave off a sense of security whenever he was around. Maybe it was okay for her to feel safe with this guy. The pair was soon met with Thor, Bucky, and Sam. Natasha put up a face but she was still peeved about last night.

Bucky kicked Nat's foot, "Hey I was just playing around yesterday…sorry…" he couldn't meet her eyes for some reason. The longer she kept silent the more Bucky felt like he was being scolded like a child. Natasha on the other hand, was pleasantly surprised by his indirect apology to her. She had a feeling that Steve guilted them into it though. Sighing she nodded her head as a sign of acceptance of his apology.

"My friend it seems like we have European history together, it is going to wonderful!" Thor's voice boomed with excitement now knowing that Natasha was joining him in class. He went on about how European history was his favorite subject and how they were going to have a marvelous time with Dr. Coulson. Somewhere between Thor's rambling her mind drifted off. In all honesty she was glad to have familiar faces around her. Then out of nowhere her stomach grumbled. Her hands flew to her midsection in embarrassment.

"Hahaha sounds like someone is hungry, let's head back now before there is no more food in the café" Steve began to stand up from his seat followed by Natasha.

"Hmm I think Lady Hill is setting out pop tarts today."

"Geez Thor you and pop tarts"

"What I can't help it if they are the most delicious of all pastries"

"I'm gonna laugh the day you deny a pop tart." Sam remarked.

"I would never do such a cruel thing." Thor said while raising his right hand.

Breakfast went a lot better than what she expected. She actually felt like she was bonding with some of the guys. Back in her room, Natasha on the couch with her phone in hand. It was her first phone call she's made to her parents since the first day. Her fingers glided over the touch screen dialing in the number. She waited in anticipation for them to pick up.

"Hello"

"Hey dad long time no see aha"

"Oh my goodness sweetheart how are you, are you adjusting ok, did you contact Dr. Coulson?" Her father greeted her enthusiastically while bombarding her with questions about her well being.

"Yes dad I've already been acquainted with Dr. Coulson, he's actually rather nice and he introduced me to some of the female staff that can help me out." Natasha answered each one with sincerity.

"That's good to hear Natasha, here let me get your mother on the line…"

"Hello? Natasha sweetie are you there?"

"Heya mom how've you been?"

"It is so nice to hear from you again sweetie, are you ok, are you eating well, did anyone touch, I swear they if they did they will feel the wrath of mother Russia."

"No, no one has 'touched' me mom but I'm doing fairly well, eating three square meals a day and surprisingly I've made a few friends already."

"Oh who are they?"

"Well the school nurse and the cafeteria lady for starters." She heard her mom giggle on the other side. "But some of the guys in the dorm have helped me out quite a bit too." Natasha was smiling on the other side. It was soothing to hear from someone close.

"So any luck with Alexie?"

"Yes, we have hired a private investigator to track down your brother, it's a work in progress right now." Natasha just sighed at the fact that her brother is still missing. Well at least for the most part she doesn't hate being at the academy. Sadly the phone call ended as soon as it begun. Natasha clicked the end call button on her phone then sat it down next to her on the couch. Reality was starting to hit her fast. The days of freedom were dwindling down with each passing moment. Classes will be resuming within the next two days.

**Hey guys I know it's been awhile since my last update on this story. I feel like this chapter is a bit slower but it's more of a transition chapter for the story. Sorry again for the late update I'll try to get chapter 5 squared away ASAP. THANK YOU for all the follows,favorites, and reviews it means a lot to see them :) Reviews are great appreciated!**


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